


Girl Talk

by Vietta



Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Multi, don't fuck with Laney-poo, elena is a badass, rated T and up for violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-16
Updated: 2016-09-16
Packaged: 2018-08-15 07:13:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,942
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8047204
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vietta/pseuds/Vietta
Summary: Elena is watching because she has to, because should Reno not be able to secure the target she is supposed to step in. Should the target fright, she will grab the reins and take charge. There will be no need for her to intervene, that much is apparent to her in the way the target is trailing fingers over the patches sewn onto the front of Reno’s stupid jacket. So for now, she simply has to wait for Reno to misstep, which he won’t. If Reno knows anything, it is how to manipulate people.





	Girl Talk

Things would be easier if she could just hit him. Hit him right in the middle of that smug smile and scrape it off with her knuckles. It would be admitting he was right, so she doesn’t. She grips her glass a little tighter, brings it to her lips, and smears dusky red lipstick along the rim. Reno has backed her into a corner with his needling, put her in a no-win situation where she can’t deny his accusations without confirming them. She knows his green eyes can see the way her fingers tighten, have caught the way her teeth have clipped the edge of the glass, how she has swallowed more than intended of an overly sweet cocktail. It pisses her off.

“So, is it true?” He’s leaning against the bar, the sleeve of his denim jacket dangerously close to a spill. She hopes it stains the ugly thing.

She entertains the idea of pretending the club is too loud and she can’t hear him, but knows he would see right through that rouse. He is too close to her, his elbows resting on the bar as he surveys the crowd and takes far too much interest in her affairs. Thin hips nudge her and his smirk is particularly unpleasant. She answers, grudgingly. “It’s not your business.”

“I think it is, so it is.” He grabs the glass by his elbow, not caring if it is his drink or not, and drains it. “So, is it?”

“Target has arrived. Save your bullshit.” Elena taps the bar, ordering another drink.

Slinking, because a movement like  _ that _ was something that could only really be described as a  _ slink _ , he moved away from her. He flows through the crowd like water over rocks, slipping between dancing couples and even snatching a new drink on the way. Her eyes burn holes in an ugly old patch sewn into Reno’s jacket as she watches him, his quarry smothered in the press of bodies and more than willing to be singled out, made special. Reno will do exactly that, make him feel unique and desired and significant. It’s all plotted out, has been orchestrated by a man who isn’t even present. Elena has already written her report, she is so confident in how the events of the night will go. All she is waiting on are the finer details and then the paperwork will be done, ready to be looked at by a handful of people and then be filed away, shredded to pieces, burned and forgotten.

Which is what she is doing in her head with Reno’s questions.

Elena is watching because she has to, because should Reno not be able to secure the target she is supposed to step in. Should the target fright, she will grab the reins and take charge. There will be no need for her to intervene, that much is apparent to her in the way the target is trailing fingers over the patches sewn onto the front of Reno’s stupid jacket. So for now, she simply has to wait for Reno to misstep, which he won’t. If Reno knows anything, it is how to manipulate people. 

It doesn’t take long for Reno to convince his target to leave; a few drinks, some sweet words, and the man is biting at the bit to get what Reno has been offering since his first approach. She follows them at a distance, but it matters very little. Reno keeps the target’s attention so focused on him that unless she physically inserted herself between the two, he wouldn’t notice. When they get to the hotel they had secured a room at for the night’s events, Elena stops trailing them and enters the room through the fire escape. She waits with her shoes off, makes herself comfortable while Reno finishes his leg of the race. 

Soon enough she hears the scrabble of a keycard at the door, the thud of bodies hitting the door, Reno’s voice pitched low and asking, “in the hallway, man? After I went through the trouble of gettin’ us a room?” and then it is her turn to act. Reno pulls their man into the dark room, shuts the door with his foot, and then Elena is on him. She has the strap of her purse around his neck and his legs out from under him before he even grasps that she is there. Dragging him to the chair is a chore- he is taller than her and struggles the whole way- but she gets him there with extra encouragement from Reno. He tries to fight his confinement, but together they coerce him into cooperating. Reno helps her tie him to the chair, seems to take great pleasure in stuffing a sock in the man’s mouth before gagging him fully, and then they both step back to let the dust settle.

Reno, always the professional, takes the fact that the target is now subdued to resume their earlier conversation. “So, is it?”

“Dammit, Reno,” she huffs and pushes her hair out of her face, “didn’t I say to save your bullshit? It isn’t your business!”

The mattress creaks as he lowers himself onto it, stretching his legs out and getting comfortable. “It is when it involves Rude.”

If she were less collected, less professional, she might take her frustration out on the captive. As it is, she applies her energies to breaking the lock on the mini-fridge while their captive whimpers and squirms. “Why don’t you fuck him, if you’re so invested in his love life?”

“I’m invested in his happiness. Can’t bring myself to care where he sticks his dick.” The water bottle she throws his way has more force behind it than it should, slapping against the headboard beside him and bouncing off the pillows. He doesn’t comment on it and flicks the lid at their captive before taking a drink. “I give a shit about your happiness too, if that helps.”

“I’d be a lot happier if you’d shut up.” She says it with forced cheer, examines her phone while he picks at the label on his bottle and leaves shreds of it on the sheets. 

He shrugs, his focus on the bottle. “I’ll shut up when I get an answer.”

“The only person getting any kind of answer right now is Tseng.” She taps at her phone, bringing up her camera. “Smile, Bordouy! This is going right to your daddy!” 

Bordouy doesn’t take direction well, because he sobs harder instead. Elena snaps the picture and clucks her tongue at him. She tangles a hand in short brown hair and gently pulls his head upright, pats his cheek lightly. “Come on, buck up! Things could be worse!”

“Yeah, ya coulda grabbed her ass instead.” Reno snickers, propping himself up with flat hotel pillows.

“Didn’t daddy teach you not to pick up strangers?” Elena smiles and strokes his cheek gently, brushing away pathetic tears and blood. She knows it’s jarring for the twenty-something brat for her to alternate between blows and bubblegum sweetness, but that’s half the point.

“We’re still talkin’ about this, Laney.” 

“Shut the fuck up, Reno, or I swear I will put his other sock in your mouth.”

“Kinky.”

Bordouy sobs as Elena tightens her grip on his hair, parting hairs from his head. She rips her hand away, shaking hair from her fingers as she turns to regard her partner for the damn night. He’s lounging comfortably, his phone in his hands now that the water bottle is label free. The bright light distorts his features, makes his sharp features jarring and harsh. His mouth is fixed in a tight little smirk and Elena flexes her hand, tries not to fantasize about just how nice it would be to slap the shit out of him. “What the hell do you plan to get out of me here? We’re on the fucking job you idiot! We’ve literally abducted this dude so that Rufus can blackmail his daddy into setting up an illegal materia manufacturing operation, and all you can think about is whether or not I want to bang Rude? In thirty minutes we might be killing this spoiled little shit! Can’t you get your damn head in the game? Don’t you get it? I’m really not interested in gossip right now! I don’t know how you can be!” Bordouy’s starts thrashing and crying out as loud as his socked mouth allows, so she kicks him in the knee to settle him down.

Reno looks at her, still smirking, and raises an eyebrow. “Well now we definitely have to kill him. Why are you such a loudmouth, Lena? You just told our hostage the entire plan!”

She’s fuming now and takes it out first on Bordouy, slapping him so hard she’s surprised he retains consciousness. He stops his whimpering and any pathetic struggles, which is a relief of it’s own. His blubbering had grated on her already shot nerves. 

Next she rounds on Reno and his smirk gets tight at the edges, his eyes sunk in the shadows thrown by his phone. She grabs that stupid, ugly, ratty jacket by the lapels and tugs him up, shaking with her anger. She keeps her voice quiet and speaks her piece right in his face, daring him with a glare to interrupt her. “You keep your big pointy nose out of my business, Reno. If I want to fuck Rude, I will deal with that in my own time. If Rude wants to fuck me, he will deal with it in his own time. Neither one of us need  _ you _ to do any matchmaking or any of that stupid gil-novel bullshit. My love life is my business, so unless you want me bullying you about how you slobber after Tseng, I suggest you back the fuck off.” 

The smirk is gone now, replaced with a deep frown and hard eyes. She throws him back against the bed, watches him bounce as the mattress absorbs the shock. Breaks eye contact when the look he is giving her starts feeling invasive. Bordouy is sniffling and Reno is silent and the room feels oppressively quiet after her outburst. She grabs the remote for the television, turns it on and, since the only chair is taken, settles herself on the bed beside Reno while she waits for a response from Tseng. She keeps her arms folded over her chest, leans against the headboard and tries not to let Reno’s stare bother her. It takes some time for either of them to break the tension, but it’s Reno who does it.

He sets his phone in her hands and then takes to crumpling up pages of an old religious book he finds in the dresser, chucking them at their captive to entertain himself. He has pulled up his recent messages with Rude for her to read and at first, she wants to protest the breach of Rude’s privacy. But in her first glance she sees her name repeatedly and decides that, to hell with it, they’re talking about her anyways. 

More than she will ever admit to Reno and his nosey, manipulative ways, she actually does want to know what Rude thinks of her.

She doesn’t finish perusing all of Reno’s messages by the time Tseng gives her new orders, but she sees enough. They knock Bordouy out and leave him in the room, tied, gagged, and with a do not disturb sign on the door. Elena returns his phone and they say nothing more of it.

She’d torn his jacket, and she hopes it’s enough to make him trash the damn thing. 

**Author's Note:**

> Maybe someday I'll write a Rude/Elena fic that's cute and fluffy and nice and all that.
> 
> Today is not that day, but hey, a maybe is better than a no, right?
> 
> They don't get enough love and here I am not giving it to them.
> 
> For shame.


End file.
